Monday, November 25, 2002
tim mcgraw's kinda-evolution continues. his new single, "she's my kind of rain," continues his '02 artistic hit streak. he said in a recent cmt interview that
"I wanted to get the kind of sound that I grew up listening to, some of the ‘70s stuff -- ‘70s country and ‘70s rock ‘n’ roll and ‘70s r&b and that really cool, thick sound -- so we recorded analog."
well, not only is the fact that he recorded analog interesting enough (place you money his wife didn't do the same), but it's sounding like he got the sound he wanted, that "cool, thick sound." "rain" sounds less country than "I'm gonna getcha good!" - I mean, shania's got a fiddle on her record. but that doesn't mean "rain" is any less good. it really does sound like soulful rock, and tim's working, stretching his range; he sings in a register north of his usual, and it works. more than anything, this is the love song analogue to "angel boy," even if not lyrically as sound (what the hell does "like a love from a drunken sky" mean?). it's just as much of a grower, and might be just as good.
also on tim's new album, tim mcgraw and the dancehall doctors, is a very interesting cover - of elton john's "tiny dancer." tim sounds even more soulful on this track, and simultaneously more raw and less polished. the addition of a pedal steel doesn't necessarily make it overwhelmingly country, and I couldn't care less about that. recording with his road-tested band seems to've loosened tim up quite a bit; he's sounding warmer and more relaxed on his new material. like a friend, like a guy fronting a great bar band, not like a multiplatinum superstar. kim carnes singing backup on "dancer" sure doesn't hurt, either (that burlap quality of her voice blends perfectly with tim's). whatever genre he's working in, as he grows more comfortable in himself (credit faith [his wife, I mean], and his ever-expanding popularity), tim's music takes more chances and becomes, accordingly, more interesting. bravo.
"I wanted to get the kind of sound that I grew up listening to, some of the ‘70s stuff -- ‘70s country and ‘70s rock ‘n’ roll and ‘70s r&b and that really cool, thick sound -- so we recorded analog."
well, not only is the fact that he recorded analog interesting enough (place you money his wife didn't do the same), but it's sounding like he got the sound he wanted, that "cool, thick sound." "rain" sounds less country than "I'm gonna getcha good!" - I mean, shania's got a fiddle on her record. but that doesn't mean "rain" is any less good. it really does sound like soulful rock, and tim's working, stretching his range; he sings in a register north of his usual, and it works. more than anything, this is the love song analogue to "angel boy," even if not lyrically as sound (what the hell does "like a love from a drunken sky" mean?). it's just as much of a grower, and might be just as good.
also on tim's new album, tim mcgraw and the dancehall doctors, is a very interesting cover - of elton john's "tiny dancer." tim sounds even more soulful on this track, and simultaneously more raw and less polished. the addition of a pedal steel doesn't necessarily make it overwhelmingly country, and I couldn't care less about that. recording with his road-tested band seems to've loosened tim up quite a bit; he's sounding warmer and more relaxed on his new material. like a friend, like a guy fronting a great bar band, not like a multiplatinum superstar. kim carnes singing backup on "dancer" sure doesn't hurt, either (that burlap quality of her voice blends perfectly with tim's). whatever genre he's working in, as he grows more comfortable in himself (credit faith [his wife, I mean], and his ever-expanding popularity), tim's music takes more chances and becomes, accordingly, more interesting. bravo.
# posted by Thomas : 5:46 PM
